Of the estimated 50,000 to 200,000 species of fungi, only a few hundred are presently known to cause infectious disease in man and animals. Because of the biochemical and physiological differences among the fungi, bacteria and viruses, fungal diseases in animals and in humans are normally not treatable with anti-bacterial and anti-viral agents. To date, there are only a limited number of anti-fungal agents available to treat human and animal mycoses, such as griseofulvin and the polyene antibiotics such as amphotericin B, 5-Fluorocytosine (Flucytosine), miconazole and ketoconazole. These agents, however, do not provide effective treatment for all mycoses. For example, griseofulvin is effective only for superficial and subcutaneous mycoses and requires prolonged administration of weeks or months. While amphotericin B is effective for the treatment of many, but not all, systemic mycoses it is not effective for the treatment of superficial and cutaneous mycoses. Also amphotericin B often exhibits some toxicity.
Unfortunately, certain mycoses are not amenable to treatment with the existing anti-fungal agents and often are fatal to the hosts. The occurrences and debilitating effects of fungal diseases in humans and animals could be markedly reduced if a means for quickly combating the pathogenic fungal agent could be safely administered to the infected host or patient.
In addition to various methods and compositions presently known to be useful for treating human and animal mycoses, methods and compositions are presently known to be effective in combating fungal disease in plants. Because of the biochemical and physiological differences between plants and humans (and animals), methods and compositions for treating plants have not been adapted to humans and animals for the treatment of mycoses. Conversely, methods and compositions for treating human and animal mycoses have not been adopted to treating fungal disease in plants. For example, the mode of treatment for a plant mycosis is normally directed to inhibition of spore germination, or the elimination of spores. In contrast, although fungal spores are the usual causative agent for the invasion of the human or animal host, it is fungal yeast cells, fungal hyphae and fungal mycelium that deleteriously effects the health and well being of the human or animal host. Accordingly, once a human or animal host is infected with a fungal disease, inhibition of fungal spores and spore germination has little, if any, effect in curing the mycosis.